After Revolution
by Obscured Tempest
Summary: After Zero Requiem, things settled down. Nunnally took charge and peace drifted across the world through valiant efforts. All the while, Zero has remained nearby. *bittersweet; character death* SuzakuxLelouch, Suzaku-centred. Rating due to concept.
1. Chapter 1

It is hard to believe, really. But then again, it is clear as day and as simple as the sunshine. There was nothing complex about what had happened, only precise actions taken to achieve a precise result. A result that left the world to move on its own to right the wrongs one man had enforced--enforced for the sake of that very world. Perhaps then that is not what is so difficult to believe. Perhaps what is so difficult… is the lengths we went to. How many died? How many suffered at our hands? To carry that on my shoulders… I will not shrug off this mantle, but all the same I will ponder it. After all, this is my punishment. What he gave to me will lead me, ultimately, to freedom. I have not been free of such things since I was ten.

I am now twenty four. I have spent six years at Nunnally's side as Zero, that role he placed upon me. Even now I reflect upon what we did. It's… hard to believe. That we did what we did. My name is dead, as is he. I can never take the name Kururugi Suzaku again. No one speaks of Lelouch Vi Britannia, the demon emperor. Because of that, Britannia herself has been dissolved, leaving the world with multiple nations again. I want to run to him, some days, and exclaim that we did it. The price was so high, but we did it--the world is moving on its own for peace.

And then I remember that he is gone.

Because I killed him.

As per the conditions of Zero Requiem.

I was once heralded as the man who slew the demon emperor who sought to conquer the world under a vicious fist. As Zero. No one speaks of Lelouch anymore unless it is political and the matter is relevant--no one wants to remember him. No one speaks of, much less remembers, the tragedy cast upon the Japanese as Euphemia was caught up in a Geass. The "Massacre Princess" is less than a speck of dust on the history books.

_My_ princess… And my emperor. And my empress. They all strive to do what's best with different approaches. The result they seek is the same. The result they find…

Lelouch Vi Britannia--no, Lelouch Lamperouge. They burned your body and left nothing behind to mark where it was done. She knows what you did, you know. Nunnally. She knows why we did all of this. I'm not sure how. She simply mentioned it to me, quietly, not long after your funeral. She insisted on one, so there was a small, private funeral. She's such a gentle soul… It's good you chose to set the world in her hands. She said she loves you even more for what you did.

Lamperouge… That suited you far better than Britannia. Those few who have discovered the truth behind the events, and I'm not sure how they managed this, have come together to build this tiny place, hidden deep within the walls of this building we now call home. Hidden away from everything, everyone who doesn't understand and never will. People need to believe you were a horrible, demonic man, or they will never step forward. But here in this place… where Nunnally arranged for your funeral to be held, there is a statue of a man garbed in rich attire, all of marble. He is seated on his pedestal, one hand to his heart and the other over his left eye. She had it constructed as a memorial.

What do you think of this piece of art, Lelouch?

---

A black gloved hand lifted the mask from his face, revealing the weary face beneath it. Green eyes more gentle than they tended to be behind that mask, the figure garbed in blue and black took slow, careful steps toward the statue, kneeling at the base of it and setting his helmet to one side. Both hands came to rest upon stone knees until one lifted to press against the stony hand at a stony chest.

"She loves you so much," the man remarked quietly, his earlier internal monologue resurfacing now that he was physically before the statue. "It was so hard for her to sleep, at first, having seen what she had. She braved it, though… Braved it and altered everything. The world is… We did it, Lelouch." His voice shook as it hadn't done in years. He had tried so hard to never visit this room. He'd avoided it until this past year, where he peeked in, just curious as to see it. He had avoided it, after then, till this moment. "She's done exactly what you thought she'd do and all those steps have been taken to move beyond peace and into good international relations. Did you know…? Did you know that Nunnally has a fiance? He's a good man, but I will still watch over her. I'm not sure if I trust him yet, but that might just be because she's like my little sister, too."

It struck him harshly, then, just how strange it was to be conversing with a statue. Green eyes wide, Zero (no longer Kururugi Suzaku) stood abruptly, staring into the statue's face that so resembled his friend's. Lelouch was captured in this statue. There was a sword at his side Zero hadn't noticed before. Ah, the fighter and the one who strove to right the wrongs of the world. Shaking, Zero's black gloved hands braced the statue's cheeks as he lowered his forehead to rest against the stone figure's.

…And for just a moment, he thought time had stopped. He thought he'd felt arms reach to wrap around him. Thought he'd felt a hand reach up to caress his cheek. Thought he'd heard a gentle word of reassurance in a voice that no longer existed. Thought he'd felt warm lips press fleetingly against his own.

And it was over. Zero jerked back to stare down at the statue, hands now on its shoulders. Bewildered eyes scanned the marble construct, trying to find any ounce of explanation for those sensations, coming to focus on the face. All he could find was the fierce Geass carved into the statue's eyes and its forlorn expression. A shaky breath escaped.

"Lelouch…" A pain he hadn't expected filled his heart, reaching out to every inch of him. He had carefully filed away the pain of killing his best friend until now. They had sinned grievously, but found solace in the other's understanding and their steps toward redemption were taken. Zero's would not be reached until the end of his natural life, but Lelouch… The pain surged again. Zero collapsed against the statue, clinging to it while he rode out the painful memories. Of discovering that the masked Knight was Lelouch, their battles, the unveiling of Zero Requiem…

He felt, briefly, as though he could die. This was swiftly banished by the Geass to live along with his own determination. He conquered that brief desire and looked again to the statue's face, searching for, perhaps, some explanation as to the strange sensations from the moment before that unpleasant bout of memories. He found none, only the cold face carved in the likeness of his best friend. Closing his eyes, he breathed in the scent of marble and stone, and the burning candles that floated around the narrow "moat" of sorts that separated the statue's place from the rest of the room.

And something else. Something soft and lightly spiced with something like cinnamon. It was so fain the barely noticed it, but… The statue felt soft, pliable, for a moment. His forehead dropped to a shoulder and those arms again wound around his waist. Another gentle murmur and a sharp quip, and Zero clutched at the white fabric beneath his fingers, unknowingly having moved to return the embrace.

Even if it was all a meaningless lucid dream, Zero--no, Suzaku wanted to hold onto it for a little longer. A thin, almost delicate hand took hold of Suzaku's chin and directed it to face the hand's owner. Deep violet eyes caught hold of green and time really did stop. That soft hand stroked the side of Suzaku's face, causing the Japanese man to lean into it, lids lowering.

"_Suzaku._"

"…Yes, Lelouch?" Suzaku's focus returned to this strange apparition's face in full, hoping, for a moment, that it would never vanish.

"_Stay strong._" The pale dressed man didn't allow time for a response to be put together. Instead, lips pressed tightly against Suzaku's, catching the knight off-guard. After a moment, Suzaku lifted an unsteady hand to slide fingers through and grip at Lelouch's hair, almost timidly reciprocating the kiss. Upon reflection, Suzaku--no, Zero shouldn't have let himself fall into the hands of a dream like this, but… Something he could never have done in life… Without repercussion, now it could be realized.

No one has to know you're in love with a dead man.


	2. Chapter 2

Years still pass for us, Lelouch. Nunnally's stepped down and her daughter now leads the way. Marianne is a bright young woman, taking careful note of her mother's reign and trying her best to keep to that same ideal. I still protect them both, though Marcus, Nunnally's husband, is a capable man. It sounds like a monarchy, but actually people voted for Marianne to take her mother's place. Isn't it wonderful…? Everyone has a say, now. A legitimate voice. A _heard_ voice.

Everything feels slower, now, but I suppose that's to be expected; it's been twenty-eight years since Zero Requiem. As Zero, I will continue to protect them. Fortunately, there has been no fighting, so there hasn't been the same strain there once was. I am still capable, though. Forty-six isn't so old that I can't manage anything anymore. I am remaining a symbol at the very least for these people, a reminder of everything that started thirty years ago.

---

The man leaned against the pedestal his former emperor perched upon, frozen in time. Zero was no longer the young man he had once been. The war from so long ago still rested within his features, more prominent now than had been when he was younger, lending harshness to his features. The lines around his mouth and eyes spoke when he would not. Volumes went unvoiced.

For now, in this quiet time, Zero remained in this sanctuary. He could almost imagine the youthful arms around his shoulders and the cheek against his own. Though the dreams had stopped, he remembered how everything felt in those lucid moments. Zero raised a gloved hand as if to set it over one smaller than his own he imagined to be resting against his chest. How much longer…? But he would live. He would persist and keep to his duty as Zero and protect. Death only entered his mind those scant few days he entered this veritable shrine. He kept Lelouch in his heart, but he would not subject himself to such heartbreaking encounters. Today was different, however, as no such dreams chased him, despite that strange phantom sensation about his shoulders and against his cheek.

---

At sixty-two years old, all these things have become so strange to me. I am fit for my age, but… it seems that the people no longer have need for Zero. I find it relieving, Lelouch. They are carving their paths without someone to remind them of the horrors of the past. Apparently it's being taught in schools so that students know why their lives are as they are, now.

I've heard from Nunnally; she's due for another grand child, it seems. This will be Marianne's fourth child. It makes me wonder… Did Rivalz ever manage to ask Milly out or anything? Ah, I wouldn't know. I haven't heard from them in so long… Not since before Zero Requiem, in fact. Forty-four years, Lelouch… Forty-four years.

The current government has had their head on straight for those forty-four years… I think things can continue like this…

---

He felt so tired as he sat beside the pedestal, now; winter did that to a person. Greying hair settled about his temples and a small smile remained on the man's lips. Zero patted the statue's knee affectionately and shifted for comfort. There was an emptiness in the air that Zero ignored; it had begun to feel empty long before now. There was the faintest trace of warmth where Lelouch's marble figure sat, as if the fading warmth of life rested there. Zero stared at the smooth walls of this miniature shrine. With age came the ponderings of life--mostly how much longer you had. He was sixty-five, now, and it was starting to get to him. Only three years ago, he'd been fine. Ah, but age sneaks up on you, doesn't it?

Zero turned to face the statue and carefully drew himself up to lean against it. He held the cold figure for a moment as if it would reach the spirit of the man it embodied. Could it reach Lelouch?, he wondered. He didn't suppose it mattered in the end. The dead were gone, after all. But perhaps something awaited the spirit beyond the termination of existence.

Gently, young arms wrapped tightly around Zero's--no, Suzaku's middle, supportive, and a chin settled against his shoulder. It was all so much more vivid a feeling than even the first time he'd encountered it. Suzaku smiled as the taller figure murmured to him, the pair moving to seat themselves on the floor.

…And time stopped.

---

Toward the end of the year in a.t.b. 2065, a private funeral for a former Knightframe pilot and later bearer of the name "Zero" is held.


End file.
